The Guardian bolsters U.S. digital leadership

Former Fusion chief Jane Spencer joins the publication as deputy editor of strategy as the newspaper puts more emphasis on mobile and video.

The U.S. division of British publication The Guardian has bolstered its digital strategy with a new appointment.

Jane Spencer (pictured) has been brought on as deputy editor of strategy. She will report to The Guardian‘s U.S. editor, Lee Glendinning.

Prior to her new position at The Guardian U.S., Spencer served as SVP, emerging platforms and then editor-in-chief, digital at pop culture, news and fashion publication Fusion. In her new role at The Guardian she will lead “cutting-edge” projects and drive newsroom innovation, concentrating on mobile and video.

The Guardian U.S. is the latest big-name traditional news publication to work to bolster its digital division in a bid to find audiences online as newspaper readership and advertising continues to plummet. Spencer’s appointment follows a tumultuous 2015 for the publication that saw it face a number of cutbacks resulting from a decline in advertising revenue that affected upwards of 250 people, including 100 editorial staff.

The Daily Mail, another British publication to have moved to have launched in the U.S., has found success attracting readership with digital video content. According to Jon Steinberg, CEO of Daily Mail North America in his presentation at the NewFronts in 2015, the publication saw 225 million global visitors and 80 million global video views per month, indicating a year-over-year video growth in the U.S. of 94%.